The Synagogue of Casale Monferrato is a 16th-century synagogue located in Vicolo Salmone Olper in the traditionally Jewish quarter of

Casale Monferrato Casale Monferrato () is a town in the Piedmont region of Italy, in the province of Alessandria. It is situated about east of Turin on the right bank of the Po, where the river runs at the foot of the Montferrat hills. Beyond the river lies the v ...

Province of Alessandria The Province of Alessandria ( it, Provincia di Alessandria; pms, Provincia ëd Lissandria; in Piedmontese of Alessandria: ''Provinsa ëd Lissändria'') is an Italian province, with a population of some 425,000, which forms the southeastern part o ...

, region of

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, Italy.

History

The synagogue was built in 1595 and is particularly known for its exquisite

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

interior with walls and ceiling embellished with elaborate painting, carving and gilding. It is located in a narrow alleyway in the traditionally Jewish quarter of

, which in the eighteenth century became the city’s

ghetto A ghetto, often called ''the'' ghetto, is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, especially as a result of political, social, legal, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished t ...

. The plain building houses a clandestine synagogue, giving no indication of its purpose as a Jewish house of worship. As in most early modern European synagogues, the synagogue was entered not directly from the street, but via a courtyard: both for reasons of security and to comply with laws requiring that the sound of Jewish worship not be audible by Christians. Casale Monferrato is one of the few synagogues that survived in Piedmont, which once had many. Others in or close to Monferrato and the

Langhe The Langhe (; ''Langa'' is from old dialect Mons Langa et Bassa Langa) is a hilly area to the south and east of the river Tanaro in the province of Cuneo and in the province of Asti in Piedmont, northern Italy. It is famous for its wines, chees ...

include the Biella Synagogue, the Vercelli Synagogue, and those of

Asti Asti ( , , ; pms, Ast ) is a ''comune'' of 74,348 inhabitants (1-1-2021) located in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy, about east of Turin in the plain of the Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and it is deemed t ...

Alessandria Alessandria (; pms, Lissandria ) is a city and ''comune'' in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, about east of Turin. Alessandria ...

Chieri Chieri (; pms, Cher) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont (Italy), located about southeast of Turin, by rail and by road. It borders the following municipalities: Baldissero Torinese, Pavarolo, Montaldo Torine ...

Carmagnola Carmagnola (; pms, Carmagnòla ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located south of Turin. The town is on the right side of the Po river. The nature of the soil determined over t ...

Cherasco Cherasco is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian ...

Moncalvo Moncalvo is a village and ''comune'' in the Province of Asti in the Italian region Piedmont, located about east of Turin and about northeast of Asti on the national road SS 547 which links Asti to Casale Monferrato and Vercelli. Historically it ...

and

Trino Vercellese Trino ( pms, Trin) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southwest of Vercelli, at the foot of the Montferrat hills. Trino borders the following mun ...

. In 1941, the synagogue was vandalized in the context of the Fascist persecution of Jews during World War II. The synagogue is listed as a National Monument of Italy since the restoration works carried out in 1968.Samuel Kurinsky
''The Jews of Casale Montferrato: The History of a Vital Community Rediscovered''
Fact Papers on the Technological and Artistic Contributions of the Jews to the Evolution of Civilization, 24 (Hebrew History Federation).

The museums

The Jewish Art and History Museum, also known as the Museum of Silverware (''Museo degli Argenti''), was designed by Giulio Bourbon and is located in part in the former women’s gallery of the synagogue. On display are precious silver ceremonial objects and embroidered textiles, as well as artefacts related to Jewish festivals and domestic life.
Casale Monferrato Jewish Museal Complex The Museum of Lights (''Museo dei Lumi'') occupies an underground room formerly used for baking

matzot Matzah or matzo ( he, מַצָּה, translit=maṣṣā'','' pl. matzot or Ashk. matzos) is an unleavened flatbread that is part of Jewish cuisine and forms an integral element of the Passover festival, during which ''chametz'' (leaven and f ...

and houses a growing collection of menorahs created by contemporary Jewish and non-Jewish artists including Elio Carmi,

Emanuele Luzzati Emanuele Luzzati (3 June 1921 – 26 January 2007) was an Italian Painting, painter, production designer, illustrator, film director and animator. He was nominated for Academy Awards for two of his short films, ''La gazza ladra'' (''The Thie ...

, Aldo Mondino, Gabriele Levy, Marco Porta, Tobia Ravà,

Antonio Recalcati Antonio Recalcati (2 May 1938 – 4 December 2022) was an Italian painter and sculptor. Biography In 1960, Recalcati moved to Milan and met the poet and critic Alain Jouffroy, who first noticed his work. From 1960 to 1962, he exhibited his works ...

and

David Gerstein David Gerstein (born February 6, 1974) is an American comics author and editor as well as an animation historian. Gerstein has five books and countless comic book credits to his name. He has written many Disney comics stories, usually featuring ...

.The Museum of Lights: Introduction
Casale Monferrato Jewish Museal Complex.
Casale Monferrato Jewish Museal Complex.'David Gerstein, giunto da Tel-Aviv, accende la Hanukka di Casale'
''Il Monferrato'', 29 November 2010.

References

External links

(in English)

Casale Monferrato

* ttp://www.morasha.it/zehut/ans01_musei_italia.html Annie Sacerdoti: I beni culturale in Italia Ravenna 22–24 maggio 2001(in Italian) {{Authority control Ashkenazi Jewish culture in Italy Ashkenazi synagogues Casale Buildings and structures in Casale Monferrato Casale Casale Museums in Piedmont 16th-century synagogues

History

The museums

Archives

References

External links